Future Students:

2003

FLORENCE, S.C. – The Francis Marion University volleyball team and men’s and women’s soccer teams all open their 2003 seasons this weekend, with the Patriot men’s soccer squad playing at home.

The FMU volleyball team will participate in the Holiday Inn Sunpree Classic, hosted by Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Fla., Friday and Saturday (Aug. 29-30). On Friday, the Patriots will play Eckerd at 1 p.m. and Mount Olive College at 5 p.m. On Saturday, FMU will battle Saint Leo University at 9:30 a.m. and Converse College at 3:30 p.m.

FMU returns six letterwinners, including three starters, from last season’s 13-22 squad. Eckerd was 15-19 in 2002.

The FMU men’s soccer team will host Eckerd, Saturday at 4 p.m. on the FMU Soccer Field, while the Patriot women’s soccer squad will play at Lenoir-Rhyne College, Saturday at 4 p.m.

The Patriot men return nine lettermen, including five starters, from last year’s 15-5-0 team that won the Peach Belt Conference regular-season championship. FMU leads the series with Eckerd 2-1-0, and is 10-16-2 in season openers and 3-3-0 in season openers at home. Eckerd was 8-9-0 last fall.

The FMU women return nine letterwinners, including eight starters, from last season’s 12-6-1 squad. Lenoir-Rhyne lost only one player from its 2002 squad that posted a 13-5-2 mark.